Photo Credit: @welcome_home

While this may seem like a lame excuse to have a margarita in December, let’s just remember that 2020 is not over yet! Sure, margaritas are usually reserved for hot summer days but there are no rules as to when you can have one. Enter the White Christmas Margarita. With the addition of white cranberry juice and coconut milk, Santa Claus himself will wish you left this out instead of milk. You can keep your garnish simple by using rosemary sprigs and lime or you can rack up some bonus points and skewer a row of sugar coated cranberries (you got this!) So even if it doesn’t snow on December 25th, I know I’ll be having a White Christmas. Cheers!

Recipe courtesy of The Spruce Eats

White Christmas Margarita


Ingredients:

• Cinnamon sugar (for rim)
• 1 lime wedge
• 1 1/2 ounces silver tequila
• 1 ounce coconut milk
• 1/2 ounce orange liqueur (triple sec or Grand Marnier)
• 1/2 ounce fresh lime juice
• 1/2 ounce white cranberry juice
• Garnish: lime slice
• Garnish: cranberries
• Garnish: rosemary sprig

Directions:

1. Gather the ingredients.
2. Rim an old-fashioned glass with cinnamon sugar: Begin by wiping a lime wedge around the edge of the glass to wet the rim, then roll it in a shallow dish of cinnamon sugar.
3. In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, pour the tequila, coconut milk, orange liqueur, lime juice, and white cranberry juice. Shake well.
4. Strain into the prepared glass over fresh ice. Garnish with a lime slice, a few cranberries, and a sprig of rosemary.
5. Serve and enjoy!

Photo Credit: www.pastemagazine.com

Every year in November, family members gather around the table and give thanks while enjoying the traditional turkey, stuffing, and mashed potatoes etc.

In honor of Thanksgiving, Paris Gourmet has listed 17 random facts about this holiday. So make your plate and enjoy your meal and these random facts.

🦃 In 1863 President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed Thanksgiving a national holiday due to honoring Sarah Josepha Hale's ( she is known for writing the song "Mary had a little lamb") on going letters, requesting for 17 years that it should be a national holiday.

🦃 It has a rough history, but some U.S. Presidents pardon their turkey from being their dinner.

🦃 The average American eats around 16lbs of turkey per year.

🦃 In 1953 Swanson company had 260 tons of leftover frozen turkeys, so a salesman came up with the idea to make tv/ frozen dinners out of the leftovers

🦃 Cranberries are also known as "bounce berries" due to the method of tossing the cranberry in order to determine if it is ripe. So if your cranberry has a bounce, its ready to eat!

🦃 60 million boxes of Stovetop's instant stuffing is sold each Thanksgiving

Photo Credit: www.goodhousekeeping.com

🦃 The USDA states not to rinse your turkey in order to prevent harmful bacteria from spreading. As long as you cook the turkey to 165 degrees F, it will eliminate bacteria.

🦃 Minnesota produces the most turkeys in the U.S.

🦃 Only male turkeys can produce the "gobble" sound and it ca be heard from a mile away.

🦃 The tradition of football on Thanksgiving began in 1876 with a game between Yale and Princeton. In 1920 the NFL played their first game on the holiday.

🦃 Butterball answers over 100,000 questions about turkey and its cooking techniques every November and December. These questions can be answered via their Butterball Turkey Hotline

🦃 Apple pie is considered the most popular pie in the States.

Photo Credit: www.abc7newyork.com

🦃 The average American consumes 3,000 - 5,000 calories at Thanksgiving dinner.

🦃 There are 4 towns in the U.S. named " Turkey". They are located in North Carolina, Texas, Arizona, and Louisiana.

🦃 There is a National Turkey Federation... it does exist!

🦃 In WW2, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade was cancelled due to the war and the rubber from the balloons was used to supply the army.

🦃 The first Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade didn't even have balloons. Instead they featured animals from the Central Park Zoo.

🦃🦃🦃 For more fun facts about Thanksgiving 🦃🦃🦃

🦃 Mental Floss - 25 Little Known Facts About Thanksgiving

🦃 Mental Floss - 23 Thanksgiving Food Facts

🦃 Mental Floss - Debunking 18 Thanksgiving Myths

🦃🤣🦃 For A Good Laugh🦃🤣🦃

🦃🤣Addams Family Values (1993)- Wednesday's Revolt

🦃🤣Addams Family Thanksgiving Turkey Day Song

It may look different, but the celebration is the same.

Parades. Remembrances. Family Barbecues. Theses are all the hallmarks of a typical Memorial Day celebration. But how we celebrate Memorial Day 2020 with be very different from years past. How will it maintain its special place in American hearts, not only as a day to remember America's heroes, but also as the unofficial start of summer? 

"It is unclear where exactly this tradition originated; numerous different communities may have independently initiated the memorial gatherings. And some records show that one of the earliest Memorial Day commemoration was organized by a group of freed slaves in Charleston, South Carolina less than a month after the Confederacy surrendered in 1865. Nevertheless, in 1966 the federal government declared Waterloo, New York, the official birthplace of Memorial Day." (History.com)

In the beginning , the day (known at that time as Decoration Day) was celebrated every year on May 30th, regardless of the day of the week.  In 1968 Congress passed the Uniform Monday Holiday Act, which established Memorial Day as the last Monday in May in order to create a three-day weekend for federal employees; the change went into effect in 1971. The same law also declared Memorial Day a federal holiday.

And as with any holiday, food (and group celebrations) have always played a large part. Whether it's with typical cookout fare of "burgers and dogs," or more traditional barbecue like ribs or briskets, Americans have used this day to come together. 

If you're going to have a small gathering of people over for a cookout, here's a great discussion about how to do so safely. If you'd rather bring in food from a local restaurant, there are great options available. Our friends at Eater have covered a lot of barbecue over the years. Here's a link to some of their recent coverage of great barbecue around the country that may help you get your fix this weekend.

Whatever you do, and however you celebrate, stay safe, eat well, and raise a glass to the brave men and women of our armed forces. 

Eric Bertoia shares his secrets for a great plate.

As the corporate pastry chef of Paris Gourmet, Eric Bertoia spends his days creating and tasting plenty of desserts. He loves nothing more than to help other pastry cooks and chefs around the country raise their game, and to create menus that can really wow their customers.

But what does he look for in a great dessert? I got the chance to sit down with Eric and talk about what tingles his tongue, and learn these 7 great tips to creating a perfect plate.

1. Respecting the season

Seasonality is one of the most crucial elements of successful dessert creation. Guests definitely look for different flavors at different times of the year. For example, while chocolate desserts may be popular year round, they're definitely in higher demand in the winter. And spring and summer scream for desserts that feature fresh berries. And, of course, seasonality only helps the next element...

2. Quality of ingredients

It's a given that ingredients, especially fresh produce, is going to be of higher quality when it's in season. Featuring fresh strawberries in a dessert in the middle of December only leads to higher costs for lower quality and, ultimately, a disappointed customer. And that's probably the highest cost of all. 

3. Using 3 to 5 different flavors

Incorporating a variety of flavors in your dessert keeps things interesting on your customers palate. But you don't want too many, otherwise it becomes a confusing jumble of flavors where no single element stands out. And remember...sometimes you want flavors that contrast, sometimes you want flavors that compliment.

4. Balancing textures : crispy - soft - creamy - temperature

Similarly, having a multiple different textures at play in your dessert gives another layer of interest. If your dessert is only cold-soft-and-creamy, with no element that brings some crunch or heft, your customer is going to lose interest quickly. Think about the perfect s'more...the gooey warm slightly melty chocolate, a gooey-crisp marshmallow, and a crunchy graham cracker. The whole is definitely greater than the sum of its parts. 

5. Design/ decoration

Everything great plate needs a finishing touch. But make sure it contributes meaningfully to the final product. 

6. Presentation

"We eat with our eyes," the old adage goes. Find new and creative ways to present your dessert - ways that bring delight, surprise, and joy to your guests. At the same time, make sure the presentation is in service of the dish, not the other way around. 

7. Taste

And of course, nothing else matters if the dessert doesn't taste good. Get feedback from your coworkers. Refine, refine, and refine again. Always seek greater clarity of flavor

Follow these 7 steps, and you're well on your way to creating a memorable dessert that will keep your guests coming back for more. 

Spring is right around the corner, which means a menu change can’t be far behind.

It’s a great time to embrace “local and seasonal”, and we found the perfect website (they also have an app) to help you do just that. It's called The Seasonal Food Guide. Use their handy drop down menus to choose your location and the time of year, and it will tell you what’s being grown near you. There’s even a button to see “what’s coming soon.” Try it now...you might find new inspiration to help you jump-start your spring menu.

Seasonal Food Guide